Publications

This memorandum considers the state of patent law after the United States Supreme Court's decision last year in eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C. There the Court eliminated the presumption that a patentee who establishes at trial that a valid and enforceable patent has been infringed is entitled to a permanent injunction. This memorandum examines the impact of the eBay decision on the award of injunctive relief and proceeds in four parts. First, the memo provides a background of remedies available to a patentee in U.S. District Courts against an adjudicated infringer. Second, it discusses the eBay case and how it reshaped the discussion of permanent injunctions. Third, it analyzes the reported post-eBay District Court cases deciding the issue of whether to grant a permanent injunction. Finally, it considers how the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit might apply the four-factor test once it begins considering appeals of lower court decisions relating to injunctive relief in patent infringement actions.